This invention relates generally to a tool for placing and marking the position of a utility box in a wall, such as drywall, floor, or ceiling. A “utility box” is a device intended to be accessible through an opening in a wall such as electrical service boxes for outlets and switches, cable television and telephone connections, plumbing fixtures such as modular clothes washer water connections, and lighting fixtures such as recessed lighting cans. More particularly, the present invention relates to a device and method for marking the location and support for an utility box on wall and for creating the aperture in the wall for receiving the utility box.
During the constructing of a building, walls are typically formed by initially erecting a framework including wood or metal studs. Rough plumbing and electrical wiring is then routed through the framework. The wiring is terminated at electrical boxes mounted to the framework studs. Phone lines, speaker wire and coaxial cable for cable television wired through the framework may also terminate at electrical boxes to facilitate installation. The plumbing may also be terminated at a modular connection. Eventually, the framework, rough wiring and plumbing, and utility boxes are covered by materials such as drywall sheets, paneling, or laths that serve as a plaster base.
There are many devices for positioning utility boxes properly during new construction, when the framework is accessible. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,630,281 discloses a device having bearing surfaces for placement against a stud, surfaces for placement against a sole plate, and a protruding section that accepts the electrical box, such that the device holds the utility box at the proper location relative to the stud. Often, however, it is necessary to add utility boxes after the construction has been completed. The devices that are used for aligning, or positioning, utility boxes during new construction generally require ready access to the building framework and are therefore of little assistance in remodeling applications.
Electrical boxes have been designed for installation after construction has been completed which do not attach to a stud or building framework, but mounts against the wall (generally gypsum board) and uses the wall as a support for the box. U.S. Pat. No. 6,223,445 discloses a tool for installing such utility boxes. Devices of this type are of little use with utility boxes which require mounting to the building framework, since such framework must be avoided for proper installation of the electrical boxes for which they are intended.
Known installation procedures for installing utility boxes in existing walls typically include finding a location along the wall where the gypsum board is backed by the building framework, placing a paper template over the wall to one side of the framework, where the box is to be installed, marking the wall utilizing the template, cutting the gypsum board along the locations indicated by the markings, removing the cut portion of the gypsum board and inserting the box through the opening, and then attaching the box to the framework. This method, however, is difficult to carry out without damaging the gypsum board or producing an installation that is correctly positioned, with the side edges of the box being in a straight vertical orientation and properly aligned with the side of the framework. Many of the problems associated with improper positioning of the box stem from the difficulties associated with the use of a paper template to mark the outline of the location to be cut from the gypsum board to install the box.
Alternatively, the utility box itself may be used as the “template” for marking the wall. With this method, the utility box is held against the wall and the wall is marked by tracing around the box with a pen or pencil. The user may simultaneously hold a carpenter's level on top of the box. This is difficult to do, since the top edge of some utility boxes are not regularly shaped and the level interferes with the tracing. In many cases, the installer merely “eyeballs” the correct position, resulting in irregularly-positioned utility boxes.